The Learner

Title : Line of Sight, Author : Ismail Bala, Pages : 114, Publisher : Praxis Magazine, Reviewer : Abubakar Isah Baba Introduction As a genre of literature, poetry is the most intensely focused one. Often, writers choose it as their transmitter of inward messages. Line of Sight in its first appearance establishes that poetry is a carrier of experiences and a painter of life. Ismail Bala’s personal experiences are apparent in his collection of eighty-one poems. His blending of layered themes: arts, love, politics, friendship, mundanity and Eurocentrism will continue to define poetry as both elusive and straightforward. And this is what gives the collection a startling flavour. It is not the intention of this piece to review every poem but rather to discuss some. The book’s title displays the most famous painting of George Seurat called Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte . It depicts the poet’s high level of exposure to the western arts, as the title Line of Sight sh...